Pharaohs, Tombs, and Temples: The Art of Ancient Egypt

The Middle Kingdom ended with the invasion of Egypt by the Hyksos from the east. Soon after Ahmose came to the throne in 1550 B.C., the Hyksos were expelled and Egypt entered the period known as the New Kingdom.

Egypt at its height:

Like its predecessor, the Middle Kingdom disintegrated, and power passed to the Hyksos, or shepherd kings, who descended on Egypt from the Syrian and Mesopotamian uplands.

Architecture:

New Kingdom architecture is dominated by grandiose temple complexes. Some were mortuary temples, the grandest of which were built against a cliff that was tunneled into and, at Abu Simbel, also carved into colossal portraits of the pharaoh. Other temples, called pylon temples, were built to honor one or more gods. Pylon temples were often enlarged by successive pharaohs and grew to gigantic size.

A temple for a divine queen:

If the most impressive monuments of the Old Kingdom are its pyramids, those of the New Kingdom are its grandiose temples, often built to honor pharaohs and queens, as well as gods.

3-20 Senmut, Mortuary temple of Hatshepsut (with the Middle Kingdom mortuary temple of Mentuhotep II at left), Deir el-Bahri, Dynasty XVIII, ca. 1473-1458 B.C.

1. Deir el-Bahari
2. Deir el-Bahari
3. Deir el-Bahari
4. Deir el-Bahari
5. Deir el-Bahari
6. Deir el-Bahari
7. Deir el-Bahari

3-21 Hatshepsut with offering jars, from the upper court of her mortuary temple at Deir el-Bahri, ca. 1473-1458 B.C. RED GRANITE, AAPROX. 8'6" HIGH. METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART, NEW YORK.

1. Hatshepsut
2. Hatshepsut
3. Hatshepsut
4. Hatshepsut

A woman portrayed as a man:

As many as 200 statues in the round depicting Hatshepsut in various guises complemented the extensive relief program.

Colossi carved out of a cliff:

Hatshepsut's mortuary temple never fails to impress visitors by its sheer size, and this is no less true of the immense rock-cut temple of Ramses II (r. 1290-1224 B.C.) at Abu Simbel.

3-22 Temple of Ramses II, Abu Simbel (now relocated), Dynasty XIX, ca. 1290-1224 B.C. Colossi approx. 65' high.

1. Abu Simbel
2. Abu Simbel
3. Abu Simbel
4. Abu Simbel

3-23 Interior of the temple of Ramses II, Abu Simbel (now relocated), Dynasty XIX, ca. 1290-1224 B.C. Pillar Statues approx. 32' high.

1. Abu Simbel - interior
2. Abu Simbel - interior
3. Abu Simbel - interior
4. Abu Simbel - interior
5. Abu Simbel - interior

Immense new kingdom pylon temples:

Distinct from the mortuary temples built during the New Kingdom are the edifices built to honor one or more of the gods.

3-24 Plan of the temple of Amen-Re, Karnak, Dynasty XIX, ca. 1290-1224 B.C. (after Sir Bannister Fletcher). Begun fifteenth century B.C.

1. Amen-Re Plan
2. Amen-Re Plan
3. Amen-Re Plan
4. Amen-Re Plan

3-25 Hypostyle hall, temple of Amen-Re, Karnak, Dynasty XIX, ca. 1290-1224 B.C.

1. hypostyle hall
2. hypostyle hall
3. hypostyle hall
4. hypostyle hall
5. hypostyle hall

3-26 Model of hypostyle hall, temple of Amen-Re, Karnak, Dynasty XIX, ca. 1290-1224 B.C. Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. (Levi Hale Wilard Bequest, 1890).

1. model of hypostyle hall
2. model of hypostyle hall
3. model of hypostyle hall
4. model of hypostyle hall
5. model of hypostyle hall

New Kingdom columns:

In the hypostyle hall at Karnak, the columns are indispensable structurally, unlike the rock-cut columns of the tombs at Beni Hasan and Abu Simbel.

3-27 Temple of Amen-Mut-Khonsu, Luxor. Left: pylon and court of Ramses II, Dynasty XIX, ca. 1290-1224 B.C.; right: colonnaded court of Amenhotep III, Dynasty XVIII, ca. 1390-1353 B.C.

1. Luxor
2. Luxor
3. Luxor
4. Luxor
5. Luxor

3-28 Temple of Horus, Edfu, ca. 237-47 B.C.

1. Edfu
2. Edfu
3. Edfu
4. Edfu
5. Edfu
6. Edfu

Sculpture and Painting:

Conventions established 1,000 years earlier in the Old Kingdom continued to dominate Egyptian sculpture and painting in the New Kingdom. However, there is evidence of a new informality and a relaxation in the traditional rules of representation.

Block statues:

These were extremely popular during the Middle and New Kingdoms. In these works the idea that the ka could find an eternal home in the cubic stone image of the deceased was expressed in an even more radical simplification of form than was common in Old Kingdom statuary.

3-29 Senmut with Princess Nefrua, from Thebes, Dynasty XVIII, ca. 1470-1460 B.C. Granite, approx. 3' 1/2" high. Agyptisches Museum, Berlin.

1. Senmut and Nefrua
2. Senmut and Nefrua
3. Senmut and Nefrua
4. Senmut and Nefrua
5. Senmut and Nefrua

A painted tomb at Thebes:

The long life of Egyptian artististic formulas also can be seen in New Kingdom painting.

3-30 Fowling scene, from the tomb of Nebamun, Thebes, Dynasty XVIII, ca. 1400-1350 B.C. Fresco on dry plaster, approx. 2'8" high. British Museum, London.

1. fowling scene
2. fowling scene
3. fowling scene
4. fowling scene
5. fowling scene

3-31 Musicians and dancers, detail of a fresco from the tomb of Nebamun, Thebes, Dynasty XVIII, ca. 1400-1350 B.C. Fragment approx. 1' X 2'3". British Museum, London.

1. fresco
2. fresco
3. fresco
4. fresco

Akhenaton and the Amarna Period:

The shift in religious focus imposed by the pharaoh Akhenaton introduced profound but short-lived changes into Egyptian art. In sculpture and painting, the traditional rules of proportion were abandoned and a more expressive intimacy replaced the earlier stiffness and formality.

A religious revolution:

Not long after Nebamun was laid to rest in his tomb at Thebes, a short but violent upheaval occurred in Egyptian society and in Egyptian art-the only major break in the continuity of their long tradition.

A new approach to representation:

After Akhenaton's death, his new city was largely abandoned, and traditional religion triumphed.

3-32 Akhenaton, from the temple of Amen-Re, Karnak, Dynasty XVIII, ca. 1353-1335 B.C. Sandstone, approx. 13' high. Egyptian Museum, Cairo.

1. Akhenaton
2. Akhenaton
3. Akhenaton
4. Akhenaton
5. Akhenaton

Portraits of two queens:

The famous painted limestone bust of Akhenaton's queen, Nefertiti, exhibits a similar expression of entranced musing and almost mannered sensititivity and delicacy of curving contour.

3-33 Thutmose, Nefertiti, from Tell el-Amarna, Dynasty XVIII, ca. 1353-1335 B.C. Painted limestone, approx. 1'8" high. Agyptisches Museum, Berlin.

1. Nefertiti
   
2. Nefertiti
   
3. Nefertiti
   
4. Nefertiti
   
5. Nefertiti

1. Tiye
2. Tiye
3. Tiye
4. Tiye
5. Tiye

An intimate look at a royal couple:

During the last three years of his reign, Akhenaton's co-regent was his half brother, Smenkhkare.

3-35 Smenkhkare and Meritaten (?), from Tell el-Amarna, Dynasty XVIII, ca. 1335 B.C. PAINTED LIMESTONE RELIEF, APPROX. 9 1/2" HIGH. Agyptisches Museum, Berlin.

1. royal couple
2. royal couple
3. royal couple
4. royal couple
5. royal couple
6. royal couple

The Tomb of Tutankhamen and the Post-Amarna Period:

Following the death of Akhenaton, the traditional cult and priesthood of Amen was re-established and all traces of the worship of Aton were eradicated. Eventually, Egyptian art returned to its traditional form, but the changes introduced during the reign of Akhenaton lingered for a while and can be detected in the fluid, curvilinear forms seen in the art and artifacts found in the tomb of Tutankhamen.

Treasures of a boy king:

The legacy of the Amarna style may be seen, however, in the fabulously rich art and artifacts found in the largely unplundered tomb of Tutankhamen (r. 1333-1323 B.C.), who was probably Akhenaton's son by a minor wife.

3-36 Innermost coffin of Tutankhamen, from his tomb at Thebes, Dynasty XVIII, ca. 1323 B.C. Gold with inlay of enamel and semiprecious stones, approx. 6'1" long. Egyptian Museum, Cairo.

1. coffin
2. coffin
3. coffin
4. coffin
5. coffin

3-37 Death mask of Tutankhamen, from his innermost coffin, Thebes, Dynasty XVIII, ca. 1323 B.C. Gold with inlay of semiprecious stones, 1'9 1/4" high. Egyptian Museum, Cairo.

1. mask
2. mask
3. mask
4. mask
5. mask

3-38 Painted chest from the tomb of Tutankhamen, Thebes, ca. 1333-1323 B.C. WOOD, APPROX. 1' 8" LONG. EGYPTIAN MUSEUM, CAIRO.

1. chest
2. chest
3. chest
4. chest

Tutankhamen as world conqueror:

Although Tutankhamen probably was considered too young to fight, his position as king required that he be represented as a conqueror.

Osiris and the book of the dead:

Tutankhamen's mummy case shows the boy king in the guise of Osiris, god of the dead and king of the underworld, as well as giver of eternal life.

3-39 Last judgment of Hu-Nefer, from his tomb at Thebes, Dynasty XIX, ca. 1290-1280 B.C. Painted papyrus scroll, approx. 1'6" high. British Museum, London.

1. Last Judgement of Hu-Nefer
2. Last Judgement of Hu-Nefer
3. Last Judgement of Hu-Nefer
4. Last Judgement of Hu-Nefer