ArtPage on Egyptian Art

Egyptian art -

Making generalizations about the visual culture of any group of people is a crude endeavor, especially with a culture as diverse as Egypt's. With this thought in mind, know that this survey, as any must be, is tremendously limited in its breadth and depth.

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Examples of Egyptian art:

Egypt, The Seated Scribe, c. 2620-2350 BCE (Old Kingdom, 4th or 5th Dynasty), painted limestone statue, eyes inlaid with rock crystal and alabaster, circled with copper, 53.7 x 44 x 35 cm, Louvre. See hieroglyphics, polychrome, and portrait.

Egypt, El Giza, Great Pyramid also known as "Pyramid of Cheops" or "Khufu's Pyramid" (tallest of the three pictured), 2600-2480 BCE, bearing masonry (cut stone), 756 feet square in plan, height 481 feet (153 meters). The square of its height equals the area of each triangular face, as determined by Herodotus in 450 BCE. The base of the pyramid covers about 13 acres. The pyramids at Giza are descendants of earlier stepped designs which were built in superimposed layers. They are gigantic prisms unique in world architecture. To build the Great Pyramid it took an about 2,300,000 dressed stone blocks (averaging 2.5 tons each) — more than any other structure ever built. Contemporary Egyptologists think the blocks were moved on log rollers and sledges, and then ramped into place. Also visit The Giza Plateau Mapping Project of the U. of Chicago Oriental Art Institute and Explore the Pyramids by NOVA Online. The Great Pyramid is one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

Egypt, Gizeh, 2599-2571 BCE (4th Dynasty), King Menkaure and Queen Kha-merer-nebty II, stone.

Egyptian, c. 2575-2323 BCE, 4th-5th Dynasties, Headrest with Fluted Pedestal, calcite (Egyptian alabaster), 9 x 7 7/8 x 3 3/4 inches (22.9 x 19.9 x 9.3 cm), Michael C. Carlos Museum, Atlanta, GA. See fluted.

The Great Sphinx at Gizeh, 2500 BCE, 4th Dynasty. See sphinx.

Egypt, Statue of Amenemhat III (reigned 1850-1800 BCE), 19th century BC, diorite-gneiss, height 86.5 cm, Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg, Russia.

Egypt, c. 1400-1300 BCE, 18th Dynasty, Chair, wood, inlaid with ivory (or bone); the leather strips are modern, 91 x 47.5 x 59 cm, Louvre. See furniture.

Egypt, 1391-1353 BCE, Dynasty 18, Sphinx of Amenhotep III, faience, length 9 7/8 inches (25 cm), Metropolitan Museum of Art, NY. See sphinx.

Egyptian, Throne Back Depicting Tutankhamen and Queen, New Kingdom, 18th Dyn., c. 1360 BCE, Cairo Museum, Egypt.

Egyptian, Mask of King Tutankhamen, front and back, gold and inlaid stones, weight 11 kg, Cairo Museum, Egypt. The Egyptian pharoah named Tutankhamen reigned from 1347 to 1337 BCE (New Kingdom, 18th Dynasty). His tomb was opened in 1922. See mask.

Egypt, Stele of the Royal Scribe Ipi, mid-14th century BCE, limestone, mineral paint, 95 x 71 cm, Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg, Russia. In the scene at the center of the stele, Ipi, a royal scribe, worships the god Anubis. Anubis, shown with a canine head, was god of the deceased.

Egypt, 203 BCE, Rosetta Stone, a slab of granite, 3 feet 9 inches x 2 feet 4 inches wide x 11 inches thick (118 x 77cm), the remains of a stele inscribed in three scripts: hieroglyphic, later Egyptian demotic -- a cursive form of ancient Egyptian, and ancient Greek. Each of these three scripts were being used in Egypt at the time it was carved. An officer of Napoleon's engineering corps found the stone half buried in the mud near Rosetta, a city near Alexandria, in 1799. Carved on the stone is a decree by Egyptian priests to commemorate the crowning of Ptolemy V Epiphanes, king of Egypt from 203 - 181 BCE The Stone is an icon of script and decipherment.

Egypt (probably late Ptolemaic Period, c. 167 - 30 BCE), Wrapped Mummy with Cartonnage Trappings, human remains, linen, cartonnage, paint, gilt, 67 x 17 1/4 x 10 inches (170 x 43.5 x 25.4 cm), Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory U, Atlanta, GA.

Egypt, Early Roman period, c. 15 BCE, Temple of Dendur, Aeolian sandstone, length of gateway and temple 82 feet (25 m), Metropolitan Museum of Art, NY. See architecture.

Egypt, second century CE, Hawara, Roman Period, Funerary Portrait of a Young Girl, encaustic on wood, height 15 3/4 inches, Cleveland Museum of Art. See Fayum portraits and portrait.

Guardian's Egypt. Here "you can explore the mystery and splendor of Egypt from the comfort of your own computer. Egypt is a fascinating land boasting a rich history and a colorful culture. The pyramids are only the beginning of the amazing traces of an ancient civilization that was unique, totally dedicated, creative, organized and fruitful. It is amazing to see the degree of sophistication and ingenuity that the ancient Egyptians displayed in the building of their monuments. Now, through modern technology, you can visit Egypt, both past and present! You can actually 'surf' the ancient world!" Includes many great pictures, lots of information, links to Egyptology and Egypt resources, and truly original Egypt content on the Web.
Tomb of the Chihuahua Pharaohs site includes ancient Egypt clip art, history and resources and an explanation of mummification.
Louvre Museum's Department of Egyptian Antiquities.
Timeline of Ancient Egypt.
Timelines of Egypt.
Chronology of the Great Pharaohs.

Also see archaeology, azurite, Coptic art, ethnic, Meroitic art, orientalism, sarcophagus, Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, and ushabti.