Ancient Egyptian Art

Ancient Egyptian ArtNew KingdomKey IdeasRe-unification after the second intermediate period and more civil unrest (in addition to exterior forces)Great temple complexes A female Queen! ( Hatshepsut)Amarna Style (very briefly) more naturalKing TutRamses II First kingdom to use the term pharaoh(great house) to mean kingChange to worship of one god (briefly)

Queen Hatshepsut, 1450 BCE, granite

Filled role of male pharaoh by wearing male clothing, false beard, cobra on headdressSlight hint of breastsFirst Egyptian queenMortuary Temple of Hatshepsut, 1470 BCE, Deir el-Bahri2 ramps; 3 colonnaded terraces; not buried there; visually coordinated with the cliffs behind it; first woman celebrated in art history;

Akhenaten, 1350 BCE, sandstoneFormerly known as Amenhotep IVStarted Amarna style first significant artistic change in two thousand yearsBody has same style as old kingdom, but smoother and more relaxedThin arms, heavy eyelids, big hips, paunchy stomach hangs over waistband of skirtStill gets the beautiful girl, though! (see next slide)

Nefertiti, 1350 BCE, limestone

Amarna styleLong, elegant neckDelicate featuresWife of AkhenatonPattern in headdress mirrors pattern on collarUnusual because it include shoulders may have been made for a full-body statue found in sculptors studioMask of King Tutankhamen, 1323 BCE, gold, enamel, semi-precious stones

Tomb discovered by Howard Carter in 1922Mummified body buried with 143 objectsGold coffin Smooth idealized featuresMinor king famous because his burial chamber was unmolested until 1922

Temple of Amen-Re, Thebes

HUGE, tightly packed columnsHypostyle hallsAxial plan (split by vertical path) Elaborately paintedRuins of Great Temple of AmunKarnak

Temple of Ramses II, 1250 BCE, Abu Simbel EgyptRock-cut tomb resembles pylon; Ramses repeated four times as large seated figures carved in-situ; sun god over the entrance; royal family are smaller statues at his legs; interior statues of Ramses carved in reserve; sunlight enters center on October 21 and lights up a statue inside

Interior of Temple of Ramses II

Statues in reserveStatue deep inside gets a suntan October 21stTemples of Ramses II (left) and Nefertari (right)

Judgment before Osiris, 1285 BCE, papyrusIllustration from Book of the Dead (spells and charms); Osiris (god of the dead) enthroned on right; jackal-headed hybrid, Anubis (god of embalming), is leading deceased to have his heart weighed against feather; hippo will eat the heart of an evil soul; bird-headed hybrid, the god Thoth, records event