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| Pharoahs and the Afterlife: The Art of Ancient Egypt | ||||
| The Land Of The Nile :: The Predynastic And Early Dynastic :: The Old Kingdom :: The Middle Kingdom :: The New Kingdom :: The Late Period | Images
courtesy of Saskia Ltd. |
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| THE
PREDYNASTIC AND EARLY DYNASTIC Evidence of a sophisticated civilization begins to appear on the banks of the Nile around 3500 BCE. Painting and Sculpture: Among the earliest historical examples of Egyptian art are a wall painting that appears to record funerary practices, and a ceremonial stone palette carved on both sides, with scenes in relief commemorating the unification of Egypt. The oldest Egyptian art: The Predynastic, or prehistoric, beginnings of Egyptian civilization are chronologically vague. But tantalizing remains from around 3500 BCE attest to the existence of a sophisticated civilization on the banks of the Nile. 3-1: People, boats, and animals, watercolor copy of a wall painting from tomb 100 at Hierakonpolis, Egypt, Predynastic, ca. 3500-3200 BCE. Paint on plaster, approx. 16' 3 long. Egyptian Museum, Cairo. The unification of Egypt: In Predynastic times, Egypt was divided geographically and politically into Upper Egypt (the southern, upstream part of the Nile Valley), which was dry, rocky, and culturally rustic, and Lower (northern) Egypt, which was opulent, urban, and populous. |
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| 3-2: Palette
of King Narmer (left, back; right, front), from Hierakonpolis, Egypt,
Predynastic, ca. 3000-2920 BCE. Slate, approx. 2' 1 high. Egyptian Museum,
Cairo.
Portraying the human figure: The artist's portrayal of Narmer on both sides of his palette combines profile views of his head, legs and arms with front views of his eye and torso. This composite view of the human figure characterized Mesopotamian art and even some Stone Age paintings. On the front of the palette, the elongated necks of two felines form the circular depression that would have held eye makeup in an ordinary palette not made for display. Architecture: The brick or stone mastaba with sloping sides was a standard type of tomb in early Egypt. The first monumental royal tomb, built in stone by the architect Imhotep for King Djoser at Saqqara, comprised a stepped pyramid, temple, and other buildings within a large, rectangular enclosure surrounded by a high wall. Tombs and the afterlife: Narmer's palette is exceptional among surviving Egyptian artworks because it is commemorative rather than funerary in nature. 3-3: Section (top), plan (middle), and restored view (bottom) of typical Egyptian mastaba tombs. The first pyramid: One of the most renowned figures in Egyptian history is Imhotep, the royal builder for King Djoser (r. 2630-26:11 BCE) of the Third Dynasty. 3-4: IMHOTEP, Stepped Pyramid and mortuary precinct of Djoser, Saqqara, Egypt, Dynasty III, ca. 2630-2611 BCE. 3-5: Restored plan (top) and view (bottom) of the mortuary precinct of Djoser, Saqqara, Egypt, Dynasty III, ca. 2630-2611 BCE. From plant to stone: Djoser's funerary temple was one of many buildings arranged around several courts. Most were dummy structures with stone walls enclosing fills of rubble, sand, or gravel. The buildings imitated in stone masonry various types of temporary structures made of plant stems and mats erected in Upper and lower Egypt to celebrate the Jubilee Festival. The translation into stone of structural forms previously made out of plants may be seen in the long entrance corridor to Djoser's funerary precinct. |
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| 3-6: Columnar entrance corridor to the mortuary precinct of Djoser, Saqqara, Egypt, Dynasty III, ca. 2630-2611 BCE. |  |
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| 3-7: Facade of the North Palace of the mortuary precinct of Djoser, Saqqara, Egypt, Dynasty III, ca. 2630-2611 BCE. |  |
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| The Land Of The Nile :: The Predynastic And Early Dynastic :: The Old Kingdom :: The Middle Kingdom :: The New Kingdom :: The Late Period | ||||