Palette of Narmer

Early Dynastic Egypt

c. 3000 BCE

*SYMBOLIZES POWER

*Votive offering

*Depicts unification of Egypt

*Early blueprint of the formula for figure representation that characterized art for the next 3000 years

*Early document marking transition from prehistory to history

Plan of Djoser's funerary complex

Saqqara

Old Kingdom

c. 2667 - 2648 BCE

*Earliest known monumental architecture in Egypt

*Architect: Imhotep

Stepped Pyramid and sham buildings of funerary complex of Djoser

Saqqara

c. 2667 - 2648 BCE

Old Kingdom

Wall of the North Palace

Funerary complex of Djoser, Saqqara

c. 2667 - 2648 BCE

Old Kingdom

*Engaged columns

*Papyrys blossom capitals

Great Pyramids

Giza

c. 2601 - 2515 BCE

Old Kingdom

*Pyramid is a symbol of the son

*Corners oriented to cardinal points

*Probably shows the influence of Heliopolis, the seat of power for the sun god Re, whose emblem was the ben-ben (pyramidal stone)

*Where pharohs were reborn in afterlife

Model of Giza Plateau

*Pyramids of Menkaura, Khafram Khufu

Khafra

Temple of Khafra, Giza

c. 2500 BCE

Old Kingdom

*Falcon Horus protects him

*Carved from diorite (brought 400 mi down the Nile)

*Symbols of unified Egypt on throne

Menkaura and a Queen

Giza

c.  2500 BCE

Old Kingdom

*Placed together so kas will remain together forever

*Pose typically symbolic of marriage

*Could be classified as high relief

Pepy II and His Mother, Queen Meryeankhnes

c. 2288 - 2224BCE

Old Kingdom

*Two frontal views

*Greater independence of arms/legs from stone

Seated Scribe

Saqqara

c. 2494 - 2345 BCE

Old Kingdom

*No symbols of power

*Color lends lifelike quality to stone

*Formality is relaxed, Realisn increased

*Middle class

*Papyrus and Stylus - tools of the trade

Ti Watching a Hippopotomus Hunt

Tomb of Ti, Saqqara

c. 2510 - 2460 BCE

Old Kingdom

*Hieratic scale!

*Continues good triumphing over evil in afterlife

*Metaphorical

*Simply an observer, like his ka

*Hunters rendered more realistically than Ti

*River shown from arial view

*Not participating in hunt - no nostalgia for life

*Abstraction of papyrus thicket

Rock-cut Tombs

Beni Hasan

c. 1985 - 1795 BCE

Middle Kingdom

*Hollowed out of the faces of cliffs

*Contains various chambers, ornamental columns, false doors, and riches

Interior of rock-cut tomb of Khnumhotep

Beni Hasan

c. 1985 - 1795 BCE

Middle Kingdom

*Symmetrical

*Paintings of life on his farm

Funerary Stele of Amenemhat I

c. 2055 - 1985 BCE

Middle Kingdom

Head of Senusret III

c. 1836 - 1818 BCE

Middle Kingdom

*Pessimistic way of life

*Sagging cheeks, sunken eyes, drooping eyelids

*Realistic

Hippotomus

c. 1985 - 1795 BCE

Middle Kingdom

*Faience - a low fired opaque glasslike sicilate

*Glassmaking restricted to royal workshops

*Middle Kingdom artists desired well-observed accurate detail

Pectoral of Senusret II

c. 1895 - 1878

Middle Kingdom

*Cartouche

*Ankh

*Cobra

*Horus Falcons

*Sun disk

*Scarab beetle

Hypostyle hall of the Great Temple of Amun

Karnak

c. 1295 - 1186 BCE

New Kingdom

*Rulers undertook extensive building programs along Nile

*Expanded poweres and political triumphs of the builders

Flower and Bud Columns

Great Temple of Amun, Karnak

Middle Kingdom

c. 1295 - 1186 BCE

Pylon of Ramses II

Temple of Amun, Mut, and Khons, Luxor

New Kingdom

c. 1279 - 1213 BCE

*Obelisk in foreground

*Temple of Theban triad

*Obelisk one solid peice

*Pylon leads to a peristyle court

Hatshepsut as Sphinx

Dier el-Bahri

c. 1473 - 1458

New Kindgom

*One of the four female rulers of Egypt

*Married half brother Thutmose II

*Regent for son Thutmose III

*Had herself declared king by priests of Amun

*Called his majesty/wore typical royal trappings

Funerary temple of Hapshetsut

Dier el-Gahri

c. 1473 - 1458 BCE

New Kingdom

*Axial Plan

*Remarkable union of nature and architecture

Plan of Funerary Temple of Hapshetsut

Dier el-Bahri

c. 1473 - 1458 BCE

New Kingdom

Akhenaten and his Family

c. 1346 - 1336 BCE

Amarna

*New artistic conventions

*Emphasized ma'at (divine truth)

*Sunken relief allows for modeling

*Nefertiti cheif preistess, maybe co-ruler

*Undulating curves

*Long/thin arms/legs

*Family

Queen Tiy

c. 1352 BCE

Amarna

*Stylized naturalism

*Funerary bust

*Mother and Supporter of Akhenaten

Nefertiti

c. 1348 - 1336 BCE

Amarna

*Exquisite beauty

*Colors of headress and necklace match

*Color used to accentuate eyes/lips

*Wife of Akhenaten

*Divine priestess

Fish-shaped Vase

c. 1348 - 1336 BCE

Amarna

*Core glass - clay object shaped then covered in molten glass; clay removed and thin strips of glass attached to make decorative design

*Fish symbol of regeneration/rebirth

*Originally used to hold oil

Temples of Ramses II and Nefertari

Abu Simbel

c. 1279 - 1213

*Axial plan

Temple of Ramses II

Abu Simbel

c. 1279 - 1213

*Dedicated to Ramses, Ra, Amun, Ptah

*Entire temple moved in 1968 to save it from Aswan High Dam

*Main hall contains eight 33ft tall statues

Judgement of Hunefer before Osiris

Illustration from Book of the Dead

c. 1285 BCE

*By New Kingdom, only a sin-free person could enjoy afterlife

*Two tests - questioned by Osiris and heart weighed against ostrich feather by Anubis

Sphinx of Taharqo

c. 690 - 664 BCE

NUBIAN

*Features strictly African

*Emulates traditional type